Bob Crow wins unopposed vote for union leadership

Rail and Tube commuters were warned to expect more industrial unrest as Bob Crow was elected unopposed as leader of the transport workers' union RMT for the next five years.

Though far from unexpected the vote sent a shiver down the spines of Tube and rail bosses.Mr Crow, 50, immediately pledged to continue the union's battle against driverless trains and cuts to the rail industry recommended in a report by former Civil Aviation Authority chairman Sir Roy McNulty, on which a government decision is imminent.

The RMT, with more than 80,000 members, is one of the few unions increasing in size. President Alex Gordon said it stood "ready for the battles ahead". He said: "Last week an industrial campaign on the Virgin West Coast Main Line secured our members a 10 per cent pay increase at a time when workers are being told to accept pay freezes and pay cuts. The RMT refuses to accept that our members should take a hit on their standards of living."